


Broken Dreams

by TearfulShadows



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: Keigo, Multi, Rikkadai, Ryoma - Freeform, Seigaku, Shitenhouji
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-07-16
Updated: 2014-02-26
Packaged: 2017-12-20 08:38:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/885234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TearfulShadows/pseuds/TearfulShadows
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ryoma is betrayed by Seigaku but he gets his story out. Determined to forget what happened, Ryoma leaves for Naniwa to stay with, you guessed it, Shitenhouji! Finding love in different places, Ryoma will put the betrayal behind him and learn that trust needs only to be placed with the right people for it to flourish.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. New Friends and Betrayal of Old

Ryoma was floating on cloud nine. He had just won the Nationals for Seigaku and his team mates were throwing him up in the air with smiles on their faces. He was laughing without restraint and could not bring himself to care.

  
After the award ceremony, Ryoma walked up to the talking Yukimura, Sanada, and Kirihara. They all stopped talking when he reached them and looked at him expectantly. Still unbelievably happy, Ryoma offered them a genuine joyful smile that took their breath away.

  
“I just wanted to say thanks for the match! You’re a great tennis player; all of you. I hope that we can play another match sometime.” Ryoma said, offering his hand to Yukimura with a small smile.

  
Yukimura, Sanada, and Kirihara were surprised at how different Ryoma was acting but they were hard pressed to think that the changes were bad. Yukimura took the smaller hand in his own and smiled too. “I would love that, Echizen. I am sure the rest of my team would as well.”

  
“Great! I can’t wait! You can call me Ryoma, Yukimura-sempai. All of you can.” Ryoma said, looking at Sanada and Kirihara.

  
“It’s Seiichi then Ryoma.” Seiichi said with a small smile. “You can call Genichirou and Akaya by their names too.” Genichirou and Akaya nodded in agreement.

  
Ryoma smiled then frowned as if remembering something. “I’ve forgotten my Regular’s jersey in the locker room. I’ll talk to you guys after I go get it, yeah? I’d love to get to know you guys better.” Ryoma said.

  
“Of course. Akaya, why don’t you walk with Ryoma to the locker room?” Seiichi said, getting a nod from Akaya.

  
The two walked off while Seiichi and Genichirou watched them go. “Ne, Genichirou, Ryoma sure is handsome, yeah?” Seiichi asked offhandedly.

  
Genichirou blushed but gave an agreeing nod. “You could definitely say that.”

  
Yukimura made a thoughtful noise. “Interesting.” He whispered.

  
A few minutes later, a tearful Ryoma was running so fast that he crashed into Seiichi. He wrapped his arm around the distraught teen and steadied them. Akaya came running up then, looking angry and out of breath.

  
“Ryoma, what happened? Shh, it’s ok.” Seiichi whispered, rubbing soothing circles on Ryoma’s upper back.

  
It was Akaya who answered. “We went to get his jersey and we heard those bastards talking. They were saying that they were surprised that Ryoma was actually useful for something and that they could get rid of him now that he had outlived his usefulness. They were saying that they hated him and couldn’t wait to crush him.”

  
“Except for Fuji-sempai.” Ryoma broke in in a tremulous voice. “He tried to get them to take it back but they wouldn’t listen!”

  
Seiichi’s navy eyes grew hard and cold as he shared a look with Genichirou, meeting his equally angry chocolate eyes.

  
“Then Ryoma burst through the door and was all like ‘you can keep your damn jersey. I’m through with you backstabbing morons. I can’t believe that I ever trusted you. Thank you for trying Fuji-sempai’. And then he ran out here.” Akaya said, shivering slightly as he recalled Ryoma’s murderous aura.

  
Genichirou smirked slightly as he thought about how surprised Seigaku must have seemed.

  
“Come on Ryoma.” Seiichi said soothingly. “The team and I were just getting ready to go to a café a few streets down from here. Why don’t you come with us, hmm?”

  
“I don’t want to intrude on you guys.” Ryoma protested quietly, drawing himself back enough so that he could see Seiichi’s face but still be encircled in his arms.

  
“Nonsense Ryoma! It’s fine.” Genichirou said with a slight smile.

  
“If you’re sure…” Ryoma trailed off uncertainly.

  
“We’re positive!” Akaya exclaimed.

  
Ryoma nodded and Seiichi let go of Ryoma but grabbed his hand lightly, eliciting a small blush from the distraught teen. They began walking towards the confused Rikkaidai team.

  
“What’s Echizen doing with you guys? And why does he look so upset?” Yanagi asked, getting ready to expand his data.

  
“Ryoma is going to come with us to the café a few streets from here.” Seiichi said a subtle hint of warning in his tone.

  
The others wisely decided not to question them further and they fell into step around their buchou, fukubuchou, and Akaya. They made it to the gates before a voice behind them stopped them.

  
“Whoring yourself out to Rikkaidai now, ahn? How long will it be before you whore your body out too?” Momo asked maliciously.

  
Akaya opened his mouth angrily but Ryoma spun around so abruptly, making him pause to see what Ryoma would do. He stalked up to Momo and punched him square in the eye so fast that it was like lightning, shocking Seigaku and Rikkaidai. Momo fell backwards on his ass and landed on the ground with a thud, clutching his eye.

  
“I am not, and was never, a whore!” Ryoma hissed. “It would serve you well to stay far away from me and say nothing untoward about me. I know things about all of you that I’m sure you don’t want getting out.” Ryoma threatened dangerously, his whole body shaking. He grabbed the nearest Rikkaidai regular’s hand, which happened to me Marui, and dragged him away from the Seigaku regulars.

  
“I’ll get you for this, bastard!” Momo screamed angrily from the ground.

  
“I’d like to see you try. You couldn’t touch me, even if you wanted to.” Ryoma shot over his shoulder, gracing Seigaku with a smirk before he turned the corner, still dragging Marui, prompting the other Rikkaidai members to snap partially out of their shock and follow them.

  
When they caught up with Ryoma, it was to see him punching a wall and gritting his teeth at the pain that caused.

  
“Ryoma!” Akaya exclaimed, rushing over to him. “Don’t do that! You’re going to break your hand if you keep doing that!” he said, going into full overprotective brother mode as he examined the bloody knuckles.

  
Ryoma chuckled hoarsely. “It’s fine Akaya. Nothing to worry about.”

  
“That was awesome by the way! I’ve never seen anyone flatten Momoshiro with one punch before.” Akaya exclaimed after sending one final disapproving look at Ryoma.  
Ryoma shrugged. “Tennis isn’t the only thing my baka oyaji made me do. I’m a black belt in martial arts; have been since I was eight.” Ryoma said, laughing at their dumbfounded looks. “My baka oyaji said that it would improve my tennis.”

  
“You truly are something Echizen.” Marui said, a surprised laugh escaping him as he ruffled the shorter male’s hair.

  
Ryoma rolled his eyes before smirking. “Are we going to that café or are you guys going to stand there and stare at me all day?”


	2. Conversation At the Cafe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some brotherly fluff in this one guys!

"There's the brat we all know and love." Akaya said fondly before wrapping an arm around his shoulders and ushering the boy back to the Rikkaidai regulars. Seiichi grabbed his hand gently and examined it before pressing a light kiss to it, making Ryoma blush faintly.

"It's said that if you kiss an injury then it is supposed to make it better." Seiichi said with a small smile, loving the way Ryoma looked with that blush painted across his features.

Ryoma pulled his cap lower over his head to cover his embarrassment. "Are we going or what?" he asked, slightly impatient.

Akaya rolled his eyes before snatching Ryoma's hand from Seiichi. "I bet you can't beat me there, Ryoma!" he challenged happily.

Ryoma's eyes lit up with a determined fire. "You're so on, Akaya!" he said.

Akaya laughed as Ryoma tore his hand from his and started running. "Oi! Ryoma! You're not supposed to be so fast!"

"Then maybe you should get off your lazy ass and train more!" Ryoma shot back with a laugh.

Akaya spluttered for a minute while his team mates laughed. "You are so going to regret that Ryoma!" he said before tearing off after Seigaku's former ace.

"It's nice to see Akaya so happy and carefree." Marui said laughter still present in his tone.

"I do feel slightly bad for Echizen when Akaya catches up with him." Niou said with sympathy.

"Who ever said that he will?" Jackal asked with a smirk.  That stopped the regulars cold.

"We should probably go make sure they aren't getting into trouble." Genichirou said with a small sigh.

"Right you are Gen." Seiichi agreed cheerfully and they started walking towards the café.

As they neared, they could hear happy laughter and Akaya yelling. They rounded the corner and immediately stopped and doubled over in laughter. Ryoma had his legs wrapped around Akaya’s waist and Akaya was stumbling around, trying to dislodge Ryoma's hold on him.

"Get off me you brat!" Akaya yelled playfully, trying to keep a smile off his face.

"Never!" Ryoma denied with a carefree laugh. "Not until you admit that I won!"

"But you didn't! I got here first!" Akaya said with a smirk.

The regulars snorted as Ryoma whacked Akaya over the back of the head. "Only because you cheated! I didn't know my way here!" Ryoma protested with a playful glare.

"Then maybe you shouldn't have agreed to the race. It's called using your stupidity to my advantage." Akaya said with a smirk over his shoulder directed at Ryoma.

Ryoma growled teasingly and used his legs to flip Kirihara over so he landed face down on the grass with Ryoma straddling his back. "Now, I know that you didn't just call me stupid right?"

Akaya looked back and saw Ryoma had a devilish smile on his face. "Now Ryoma…" Kirihara began with a nervous chuckle.

Ryoma ran his hands teasingly up and down Kirihara's sides with feather light touches, causing the teen underneath him to squirm slightly. "I didn't want to have to do this Akaya, but you leave me with no choice. Now your whole team will know your secret." Ryoma whispered mischievously.

He ran his hands more firmly over Akaya's sides. Crazed laughter erupted from Akaya's mouth before he could stop it.

"Ry-Ryoma! S-s-stop…AHAHAHA! R-Ryoma that's enough! Alright…okay…you won! Just stop!" Akaya said between laughs. The hands paused.

"I don't think I heard you. Want to say that again, Akaya?" Ryoma asked teasingly.

Akaya looked away but relented when the hands moved threateningly close to his sides again. "You won!" Akaya said loudly.

There was a minute's pause while Ryoma considered.

"I knew you'd see things my way." he said, getting off of Akaya and walking over to the out of breath regulars with a large grin on his face. Akaya grumbled a bit before getting off the ground and spitting grass out of his mouth with a disgusted look.

"Ne Akaya! I didn't know you were ticklish!" Marui said with a gleeful look on his face.

"Nobody did until this brat! How the hell did you find out?" Akaya asked in a mock affronted tone that overlaid his curiosity.

"Inui-sempai wasn't the only data master in Seigaku." Ryoma said evasively. "I have my own channels and I would even say that my information is better."

"How did my data not show this?" Yanagi muttered.

"Prove it then." Marui said in clear challenge.

"When in kindergarten, Genichirou here promised Seiichi's sister that he would marry her." Ryoma said with a shit-eating grin on his face.

Genichirou blushed darkly and pulled his hat lower over his eyes, reminiscent of a certain narcoleptic teen, as his whole team turned to look at him. "You did what now?" Seiichi asked in amusement, having never heard this story before.

"Nothing Seiichi…nothing at all!" Genichirou stuttered.

"And Seiichi…" Ryoma was once again looking like the devil incarante but Seiichi hastily interrupted.

"I think it's about time we go in and get something to eat, yeah?"

"Nervous buchou?" Akaya asked with a smirk, wondering just what his buchou didn't want them to know about. If Ryoma's smirk was anything to go by, then it was obviously something good.

"I just think that we should stop loitering outside the café. I'm also rather hungry." Seiichi said with a haughty sniff but he wasn't fooling anybody.

"As you wish, Seiichi." Ryoma said, giving him a deep, mocking bow and proceeding to sweep over to the café doors. He held them open and gestured with a sweep of his arm. "After you, dear king." He said teasingly.

"Why thank you, my humble servant." Seiichi said imperiously. Ryoma burst out laughing and followed him inside. The others followed their buchou’s quiet chuckles into the café. Once seated at a table, everyone looked over at Ryoma curiously.

"What are you going to do now, Echizen?" Yagyuu asked.

Ryoma rolled his eyes and smiled. "Enough with the Echizen stuff. It makes me feel like an old man." Ignoring Akaya's response of 'you are one!' he continued, "I think I will go stay at Shitenhouji for a while."

"Why there?" Jackal asked.

"Kintarou has been badgering me for a match since we split that ball in half." Ryoma said with a fond smile.

"Split the ball in half?" Seiichi asked curiously.  He had watched all of Seigaku’s matches and he didn’t remember them splitting the ball in half.  As far as he could remember, Ryoma didn’t even get to play against Shitenhouji.

"Kintarou was really disappointed after Shitenhouji lost to Seigaku because he really wanted to play me.  He asked me to play a match with him and I agreed on Tezuka’s condition that we only play one point. The match lasted almost an hour and we used so much power that the ball split in half; one half dropping on each side of the net and ending the match as a draw.  I unlocked the Pinnacle of Perfection." Ryoma explained in a faraway voice, remembering everyone's shocked look that day and laughing at the near identical ones he received now.

"You literally split the ball in half?" Marui asked dumbfounded. “How is that even possible?!”

"Yup." Ryoma agreed with a mysterious smile.

There was a stunned silence before Akaya remarked, "Is there anything you can't do?"

"There's plenty I can't do; trusting the right people for instance." Ryoma said, his countenance darkening.

"Will you come back?" Genichirou asked, deciding to move the conversation to less dangerous waters.  He had never seen Ryoma angry but if his tennis was anything to go by, it would be horrifying.

"Of course I will. I'm going to train with them for a while and then I will come back and have my revenge. And besides, I can't leave you guys all alone now, can I?" Ryoma said with a mischievous smile.

"I thought you were going to go to Shitenhouji?" Seiichi asked incredulously.

"I am…for training. I'm not going to school there. Rikkaidai will be my new school and Seigaku will learn just why it is not a good idea to mess with an Echizen." Ryoma said with a chilling smile.

Chills went down everyone’s, even Seiichi’s, back.  Echizen Ryoma was not someone to be messed with.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have wanted to get that brotherly fluff out of my head for quite some time now. I am working on a new Bleach oneshot and will hopefully have it posted in the next few days. It will be called Crimson Lies so check it out if you want XD


	3. Exchanging Blackmail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryoma talks more with the Rikkaidai regulars and exchanges information

"Ryoma…" Yagyuu said, slightly nervous. "You don't want to do anything you might regret."

Ryoma gave an innocent smile. "Who me?" he asked before the look melted into a cold smirk and flat eyes. "I won't be the one regretting things, of that I can promise you."

Everyone, even Seiichi, felt a shiver go down their spines at the dark promise that saturated Ryoma's smooth voice and the hard glint in his eyes.

"Momo will learn that fighting and petty insults cannot solve everything. Kaidoh will learn that friendship is precious and something to be treasured. Eiji's world will come crashing down around his ears. Oishi will learn that mothering everyone is dangerous. Inui will find that all his data is useless. Kawamura will wish that he quit tennis when he had the chance. And Tezuka…he will understand that he should respect his betters." Ryoma vowed darkly.

"And what of Fuji?" Jackal asked almost fearfully.  Listening to Ryoma now, he could not believe that this was the same cocky but harmless kid; he never wanted to get on Ryoma’s bad side.

Ryoma's face gained the angelic look again and he smiled softly. "Fuji-senpai was the only one who tried to stop them. He will not feel my wrath, but instead will be protected. Who knows, maybe he will even help me."

They all felt their hearts melting as Ryoma tilted his head to the side cutely. Seeing him like that, they couldn't understand why Seigaku had betrayed him. Sure he could be a little devil sometimes, but it was endearing…as long as you weren't on the receiving end of it, that is. They all vowed to do what they could to protect Ryoma and care for him in their own way; he would not be hurt again.

Just then, Ryoma's cell phone rang. He took it out of his pocket and glanced at the screen. Sighing, he looked at the others warningly.

"I have to take this. If you guys can hush for a few minutes, I will stay here. If not, I'm going someplace quiet."

When they all mimed zipping their lips, Ryoma answered the phone.

"Hai, oyaji?" he asked.

" _Where are you, Ryoma?"_  the Rikkaidai regulars faintly heard.

"I'm at a café a little ways away from the stadium we had Nationals in. I'm with Rikkaidai." Ryoma answered casually.

" _Why are you with Rikkaidai?"_ the voice asked curiously.

Ryoma winced and took a deep breath. "It's kind of a long story. I want to go to Shitenhouji for a while."

" _Why?"_ they heard the voice ask.

Ryoma took another deep breath and explained what had happened. Tears fell slowly from his eyes and he angrily swiped them away. There was a shocked silence and then…

" _I will kill them."_  Ryoma's dad said casually.

"Oyaji!" Ryoma said in shock, his eyes widening.

" _No Ryoma. They deserve to die for doing what they did. I trust you already have plans made?"_ his dad asked.

"Oh you can bet I do." Ryoma said coldly. "No terrible harm will come to them but I guarantee that they will suffer."

" _And going to Shitenhouji will help?"_ Ryoma's dad asked.

"I will train there and get Shitenhouji on my side. With luck, I will get there before Seigaku has a chance to spread lies, as I have no doubt that they will even after I warned them." Ryoma said with a small scowl.

" _You still have your black notebooks?"_

"Of course. They are with me all the time. Seigaku won't know what hit them." Ryoma said devilishly.

" _Okay, I will book you a flight and send you a text when I get it confirmed. You should probably start heading here soon so you can pack."_

"Hai oyaji. If a Syusuke Fuji comes over, tell him to wait in my room. He was the only one who cared so I want to say goodbye." Ryoma said softly.

" _Will do Ryoma. Bye."_

"Later." Ryoma said and closed his phone with a sigh.

He felt two sets of arms wrap around him and he relaxed, surprised to find himself so tense.

"It will be okay, Ryoma. Just you wait." Seiichi whispered.

"You still have us and we will talk to the other schools and see what we can do." Genichirou promised causing Ryoma to smile.

"Thank you." He whispered, sliding his arms up and wrapping them around the two of them.

They stood like that for a few minutes before the clearing of a throat interrupted them. They looked around and saw that the food had arrived. The three disentangled themselves and sat down at their places. Conversation was light between all of them as they steadily ate through their food.

"So these black books of yours…I'm assuming this is where you keep all of the data you gathered?" Renji asked curiously.

Ryoma smirked. "Of course. Inui uses a green notebook, how stupid is that? It's really easy to steal too. I've done that so many times and added all his data to mine."

"I don't suppose I could take a look at this book?" Renji asked hopefully.

"Now where's the fun in that?" Ryoma asked. He reached into his tennis bag and pulled out seven green notebooks and handed them to Renji. "You can have these though. I've already copied everything in them to mine."

Renji's eyes slid open in shock and sparkled with delight. "You're serious?" he asked, taking them carefully and holding them reverently.

"Naturally. There is one there for Momo, Kaidoh, Eiji, Oishi, Tezuka, Kawamura, and Inui himself.  Why the hell would you make a notebook for yourself anyway? In them is everything you could possibly want to know; love interests, eating habits, tennis style, signature moves, secret techniques, and moves being developed. There are even recipes for Inui juice." Ryoma said, smiling at the childlike glee spreading across Renji's face.

"You're the best little brother ever, Ryoma!" he said excitedly, getting up and hugging Ryoma happily. Ryoma looked shocked for a minute before smiling happily.

"Give them hell, Renji." He said in return.

"You know I will." Renji promised as he went back to his chair and immediately began studying the notebooks. He picked up the one on Tezuka first and slowly flipped through it intently, adding notes to his own notebook.

"I hope you plan on sharing those, Renji!" Marui said.

Ryoma's phone went off and he checked the message. He cursed and stood up, grabbing his bag in the process. "My plane leaves in three hours! What was my baka oyaji thinking?" Ryoma said, a panicky look entering his eyes. "I have to go!"

"Calm down Ryoma! You'll be fine." Akaya said, smiling at the frazzled glare that was sent his way.

Ryoma quickly scribbled something down on a piece of paper as the others stood up from their chairs. He gave the paper to Seiichi.

"This is my cell number. Make sure you give it to the others and keep in contact with me. We can Skype too if necessary. My name that I use is on that paper as well so you can find me.  What else…what else am I forgetting to tell you?" Ryoma said in a rush.

Seiichi laughed softly and wrapped Ryoma in a hug, effectively stilling his frantic movements. "Don't worry so much, you will go prematurely gray. We will be fine and I promise that we will text you every day. Skype too if you wish."

Ryoma ignored the gray hair jab and focused on Seiichi's voice. "Okay." Ryoma said, drawing back to smile softly at Seiichi. "Thank you Seiichi…for everything."

Seiichi ruffled his hair and stepped back so the others could say goodbye.

"See you later, Ryoma. Take care of yourself. Don't get too soft." Genichirou said, embracing Ryoma softly.

Marui, Akaya, and Niou ruffled his hair affectionately. "Don't forget to send us pictures and have fun.”

Yagyuu and Jackal offered handshakes.

Renji hugged him tightly. "Be careful, Ryo. Don't push yourself too hard." He said in concern.

"I will be careful, Renji-nii." Ryoma said, smiling happily at the nickname. "I will text you guys as soon as I get settled in."

"Okay Ryoma. Take care." Niou said with a thumbs up.

Ryoma sent them all one last look and walked out the door with straight shoulders, not turning back so the Rikkaidai regulars would not see his glistening eyes.

"He will be alright, won't he?" Akaya asked softly, worried about the brat that had quickly wormed his way into his heart.

"Of course he will. Ryoma is strong. He will fight back and he will win. Besides, he has us and we can talk to him every day if we want. For now though, we should start talking to the other schools and see what they know." Yagyuu said with agreeing nods from the others.

They would help Ryoma get justice for what was done to him.  No one messes with one of them and gets away with it.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you think the relationships are growing too fast? I don't want it to seem like it's an instantaneous bond but they have been around each other for matches and stuff so they do kinda know each other.


	4. An Outpouring of Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryoma lets go of some of his feelings.

“Oyaji, what in the name of Kami were you thinking when you booked that flight?” Ryoma called as he stepped in his house.  He was still panicking a bit but his phone going off halted his movement.  He pulled it out and looked at the message from an unknown number.

**Take a deep breath, Ryo-nii.**

Ryoma smiled.  “Will do Renji. Thanks!” he sent back, saving the number to his contacts and setting it to the first speed dial.  He wanted to always be able to get a hold of his brother should he need to.

He slipped his shoes off and walked up the stairs to his room.  He threw open the door and flung a suitcase out of his closet onto his bed, almost hitting the figure sitting there.

“Whoa, careful there Ryoma!” the figure said with amusement.

“Fuji-senpai?” Ryoma asked, whirling around to see a sad-looking Syusuke Fuji sitting on his bed.

“You don’t have to call me that, Ryoma.  You can call me Syusuke.” Fuji said with a small smile in a tone that suggested he had told Ryoma this multiple times before.  His eyes opened, revealing the glimmering cerulean.  “How are you doing?”

Ryoma’s face fell.  “I’m alright Fuji-sen…Syusuke.” Ryoma corrected hastily at the look he received.  “I’ve been hanging out with the Rikkaidai regulars and they’ve promised to help me.  I have two brothers now! Renji-nii and Akaya-nii.” Ryoma said happily.

“Saa, do you now?” Syusuke asked, feeling a slight flash of pain that he was not one of Ryoma’s ‘brothers’.

“Yup! Masaharu, Hiroshi, and Kuwahara are really nice too and Bunta might be another brother…I’m not certain.” Ryoma said, tilting his head thoughtfully.

“You don’t think that perhaps you are rushing these relationships?” Syusuke asked, slightly hesitant to do so.

“I know it seems like it but I really feel like I can trust them.  I’ve played a few of them and you know yourself that when you play that intensely there is a connection formed.” Ryoma struggled to explain the complicated feelings he had.  “I was really happy while I was spending time with them today; happier than I ever was around Seigaku.  They didn’t try to force me into anything or to act the way they thought I should.” Ryoma finished explaining with a happy grin on his face and a slight blush at sounding so corny.

Syusuke smiled at how cute Ryoma looked but quickly sobered, his blue eyes flashing sorrowfully.  “I’m sorry for what happened, Ryoma.  I never even knew that they thought like that.  I swear to you that I never thought of you like that.” Fuji said, his eyes pleading desperately for Ryoma to believe him.

“Please don’t hate me.” He whispered softly, tears slipping down his cheeks.  He didn’t think that he could bear it if Ryoma started hating him.  Yuuta didn’t want to be around him and his sister was so much older, not to mention a girl.  Ryoma was the only thing he had left.

Ryoma’s heart clenched when Syusuke started crying.  Before he knew what he was doing, Ryoma gathered Syusuke up in his arms and held him tightly against him, gently rocking them back and forth.

“I could never hate you, Syu-nii.” Ryoma whispered, not seeing the shocked look that was thrown his way.  “You were the only one that wasn’t saying terrible things about me.  How could I ever hate you?” Ryoma stroked Syusuke’s hair softly.  “You always seemed to care about me and were content to just be near me.”

“You think of me as a brother?” Syusuke asked slowly, still in shock.

Ryoma gasped as he realized his mistake.  “I’m so sorry Syusuke! I never should have said that! I’m the worst person to have as a brother! You would probably be ashamed to call me a brother, anybody would be! Kami, I’m so stupid! Just forget I even…OOPH!” Ryoma was cut off as Syusuke smiled a breathtaking smile at him and gathered him up in a tight hug.

“I am so incredibly happy that you called me brother! I’ve thought of you as my little brother since you came to Seigaku and was hoping you thought of me that way.  Yuuta will be happy when he hears that he has another brother!” Syusuke exclaimed happily, hoping that maybe this would bring him and Yuuta closer as well.

Ryoma was bewildered but happy nonetheless.  He was glad that Syusuke wasn’t mad at him.  The endearment had honestly just slipped out before he could stop it.

“So where exactly are you going, Ryo?” Syusuke asked, watching with amusement as Ryoma flew from his arms and started to rush around his room, throwing clothes onto the bed.

“I’m leaving for Shitenhouji for a while.” Ryoma said, prompting a frown from Syusuke.  “I’m going to train and get stronger then I will come back and give Seigaku what they deserve.” Ryoma said with a chilling smirk.

Syusuke’s smirk matched Ryoma’s.  “That’s my little brother.  Don’t let them get away with anything.  Do you have anything in mind yet?”

Ryoma’s smirk became mischievous.  He whispered in Syusuke’s ear and a smirk grew across his face.  “Oh that’s good! That’s very good! When did you get so devious, Ryo?” he asked with a dark chuckle.

“I’ve always been like this, Syu-nii, but I hid that part of me away from others for a while.” Ryoma said with a smile.  “I didn’t think it would be appreciated very much when I met the people in Seigaku so I showed them what they wanted to see.”

A curious look came over Syusuke’s face as he remembered something that had been bothering him ever since it had happened.  “How were you able to knock Momo flat earlier?” he asked curiously.  Having witnessed one of Momo’s and Kaidoh’s legendary fights, he knew that that was no easy feat.

Ryoma smiled.  “Momo likes to think that he’s a good fighter but when he comes across someone with actual training…he cannot compare.”

“You’re saying that…?” Syusuke trailed off in shock.  Just how much of himself had Ryoma kept hidden?

“I’ve held a black belt in martial arts since I was eight.” Ryoma said, savoring the look of shock near identical to the one the Rikkaidai regulars had worn earlier that day.

“How did no one know about this?” he asked incredulously.

“Inui’s data isn’t as perfect as everyone likes to think.” Ryoma said blandly as he finished packing his clothes.  He moved into the adjoining bathroom and began packing his toiletries into a smaller carry-on.

“So what can I do to help you?” Syusuke asked after a moment of contemplative silence.

“The biggest thing that you could do is steal Inui’s notebooks every once in a while and copy them into a different one and send that one to me.” Ryoma said slowly.

“What do you need this information for?” Syusuke asked.

“To add to my information of course.” Ryoma said, rolling his eyes slightly.

“And do you have information on everyone at Seigaku?” Syusuke asked in a mock casual tone.

“Of course.” Ryoma said with a smirk, already knowing where this conversation was heading.

“Even me?” Syusuke asked.

“Even you.” Ryoma confirmed slyly. “And no, you can’t see it.” He said firmly, making Syusuke pout.

“You are truly something else, Ryo.” Syusuke said, shaking his head slowly.

Ryoma smiled cheekily.  “You know you love me.”

“Of course.” Syusuke agreed readily, not even having to think about it.

“RYOMA! It’s time to go!” Nanjiro yelled.

Ryoma looked at Syusuke and was slightly surprised to see tears sparkling in his sharp blue eyes.  “Be careful, okay? Text me every day.” He said a little breathlessly.

“Of course, nii-san.  This is my Skype too so we can video chat each other.  The Rikkaidai regulars have it too.  Take care of yourself while I’m gone and don’t forget to get those notebooks for me every so often.” Ryoma said with a sad smile.

Syusuke smiled and walked with Ryoma to the door of his home, helping him lug his bags to the door.  “Have a good time and don’t slack on your training.” Syusuke said sternly.

“Hai.” Ryoma agreed.  He took his bag from Syusuke and embraced him one last time.  “This is not goodbye, Syu-nii; simply see you later.  I will be back.  I’m not sure when but I will come back to you.” He whispered in Syusuke’s ear.

Syusuke drew back and smiled before turning and walking away from Ryoma for what would be the last time for a few years.

*********Time Skip*********

Ryoma stepped off the plane and was immediately assaulted by someone jumping on his back.

“Hello Kintarou.” Ryoma said blandly.

“Awww Koshimae! You’re supposed to at least act surprised.” Kintarou whined unhappily.

Ryoma chuckled a bit and pried Kintarou’s arms off of him.  He took a deep breath and smiled.  It was good to be away from the drama and pettiness of Seigaku.  His mood sobered when he thought about how much shit he will have to wade through when he gets back.

“Echizen…I think we should talk.” Shiraishi said in a strange tone from behind him.

Ryoma turned around and was met with the grim faces of the rest of Shitenhouji’s tennis members.  He sighed and replied with an equally grim tone, “I take it that you’ve talked to Seigaku then, yeah?”

“We’ve heard some pretty interesting things from them.” Zaizen said cryptically.

Ryoma sighed again.  “They certainly didn’t waste a lot of time.  I suppose you deserve an explanation of the truth since I will be staying here for a while.  I have no doubt that you have been told lies as to what actually happened.”

“Then what did happen?” Chitose asked.

“I was betrayed after I won the Nationals for Seigaku.  I had left my jersey in the locker room and when I went back to get it, I heard them talking about me.  They only used me to win the Nationals.  They didn’t want me for me, or to be my friend, they only wanted me to get them as far as I could before they got rid of me.  Syu-nii was the only one who stood up for me.” Ryoma explained with a weary sigh.

Shitenhouji looked shocked.  They couldn’t imagine doing that to any of their teammates.

“But Seigaku said…” Oshitari started before Ryoma cut him off.

“That I stole all their moves and left because they had outlived their usefulness?” Ryoma asked sarcastically, not expecting to actually be right.

“How the hell did you know that?” Koharu asked.

“Because I know my former team.” Ryoma said with a slightly haunted look in his eyes.  “I guess I just didn’t know them well enough.”

“It’ll be okay, Koshimae! Just you wait.” Kintarou said, drawing him into a surprisingly gentle embrace.

Ryoma’s breath hitched and he felt tears starting to gather in his eyes.  _“Damn I need to quit crying! This is getting faintly ridiculous!”_ he thought angrily.

“Just let it all out, Ryoma.  It’s okay to cry sometimes…especially with what was done to you.  I’m here and so is the rest of my team.” Kintarou said gently, throwing a dangerous look at the rest of his team, silently warning them to believe Ryoma.  They would not like the consequences if they did not.

As if a dam burst, tears sprang from Ryoma’s eyes quickly.  He sobbed quietly and Zaizen threw him a sympathetic look.

“Come on, Ryoma.  I’ll get your bags and we will go back to Shitenhouji, yeah? Zaizen-senpai, will you take him, please?” Kintarou asked quietly.

“Of course.” Zaizen acquiesced.

He gently lifted Ryoma up into his arms and Ryoma instinctively wrapped his arms around his neck, protesting the whole time.

“I can walk you know.” He said in a watery voice.

“Hush now, Echizen. Just let someone take care of you for a while, okay?” Zaizen said gently, surprised at how easily Ryoma fit in his arms.

Ryoma sighed and tightened his arms a bit, burying his face in Zaizen’s chest and allowed a few more tears to escape his iron control.  Zaizen tightened his hold on Ryoma and swore to get revenge on the Seigaku players for harming Ryoma like that.  It was heartbreaking to see such a normally strong, stoic youth reduced to this despairing, sorrowful boy.

 _“I swear Echizen; those Seigaku assholes won’t get away with this.  I will make them pay, whether you want me to or not.”_ Zaizen swore to himself as he started walking to Shitenhouji, Ryoma held snugly against his chest and the others surrounding them.  _“Before this is all over, they are going to regret ever meeting me and my team.”_

 

 


	5. Overhearing Conversations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryoma "sleeps" as Shitenhouji decides what to do.

" _Ugh! What happened? My head feels like someone is using a jackhammer on it!"_ Ryoma thought groggily. He had a splitting headache, his head felt heavy, and his eyes were burning.  _"Where the hell am I anyway?"_

_Ryoma heard voices coming closer to him and forced himself to focus.  He pushed the pain aside and concentrated on the conversation around him._

"Do you think he's ok? He's been asleep for a long time." Ryoma heard someone close to him say. He slowly and carefully relaxed so that whoever was there would still think he was asleep.

"Koshimae's been through a lot recently. He will probably be screwed up emotionally for a while." Ryoma heard a voice he recognized immediately say compassionately. 

"How did you accept his story so quickly? Even you have to admit that Seigaku's story seemed way more plausible."

"Because I know Koshimae." Kintarou defended grimly. "We played that one point match and I understood so much about him from that match alone. You guys don't know him as well because you didn't face him across the net. You didn't get to have your spirit clash against his in an all out battle. After experiencing that, you can't just walk away without changing."

There was a shocked, heavy silence as whoever else was there digested what Kintarou had just revealed.

"Wow Kin-chan…that was some pretty deep stuff. And you learned this from a one-point match against Echizen?" Shiraishi asked incredulously.

"He's a powerful player." Kintarou said instead. "I don't think that he truly realizes the image he has when he plays and the feelings he projects to those who play against him. Koshimae holds so much loneliness and pain inside him that it just bursts out of him when he plays.  It’s heartbreaking to feel such intense negativity. Tennis is an outlet for Koshimae and I think everyone can understand that to a certain point, whether they hold his feelings or not."

"It sounds like you and Echizen have a bond or something." A gruff voice said in slight confusion.

"Ryoma and I are like twins. That day, I saw a lot of myself reflected back at me and something inside of me linked with him. I tried so hard to get him to notice me and play against me that, when he finally did, it was like our very souls resonated with each other.  We understood each other on a level that no one else is capable of reaching." Kintarou said passionately.

"You barely even know each other!" a voice Ryoma recognized to be Oshitari's said incredulously. "You only ever really talked to him that one time that you asked for a match."

"That's where you're wrong." Kintarou said smugly. "Koshimae and I Skype all the time. We also text a lot too.  We’ve gotten together and spent the day together a few times as well."

"How did we not know about this?" Shiraishi asked in shock.

"You guys never asked so you weren't privy to the information." Kintarou said cheekily.

"So what are we going to do now?" another voice asked.

"I am going to help Koshimae as much as I can and, when the time comes, I'm going to help Koshimae give Seigaku hell." Kintarou said viciously. "Nobody messes with my twin and gets away with it."

"I'm going to help too." A voice right next to Ryoma said determinedly. Ryoma felt thin fingers begin gently carding through his hair and had to fight hard to keep from leaning into the touch.

"Zaizen? What is your explanation for wanting to help? You don't really know Echizen at all." Chitose asked curiously.

"Did you guys see him at the airport?" the voice now identified as Zaizen asked. "He was a wreck; a broken shell of himself. Do you remember the feisty man we saw at the National Tournament finals? I will not stand back and let Seigaku completely shatter someone who was so full of life and joy. I cannot stand to see someone so strong hurting so badly.  Echizen deserves better than that.  I want to see him smile again like he did after he won Nationals." He said strongly.

"So what are the rest of you going to do? Will you stand by my twin against all those who wish to hurt him?" Kintarou asked seriously.  “Or will you stand with Seigaku and condemn him for being who he is?”

"Of course we’ll stand by him. We can't let our two youngest members handle this alone, now can we?" Shiraishi said. "I understand what Zaizen was saying but I am a little confused as to what you said, Kin-chan."

"Play a match with him and you will understand." Kintarou said plainly.

"If he will agree." Shiraishi acquiesced. "Let's leave him alone for a while so he can rest. We should probably sit down with Echizen when he wakes up and figure out if there is anyone else in his corner and who will need to be dealt with."

The voices faded away and Ryoma was lulled back to sleep by the gentle fingers running through his hair.

The next time that Ryoma woke up, a ray of sun slanted across his eyes. He slowly sat up and his hand brushed against something soft. He looked down and was shocked to see a head of messy black hair laying softly against his side. Ryoma's eyes followed the black hair to a pierced ear, then down to tan arms crossed underneath the softly snoring head. After that was the body hunched over in the chair. It made Ryoma wince to think about all the stiff muscles that the man would have when he woke up.

Deducing that this was Zaizen, who had also been playing with his hair while he was 'asleep', Ryoma began running his fingers through Zaizen's silky hair, mimicking the motions of Zaizen earlier.

Zaizen breathed a soft sigh before slowly blinking his moss colored eyes open.

"Echizen?" he asked dazedly, mouth opening wide in a slow yawn. He sat up and immediately winced as a sharp pain barreled through his neck and down his spine.

"Why were you sleeping in a chair by my bed? That had to have been uncomfortable." Ryoma asked curiously, tilting his head to the side.

Zaizen ruffled Ryoma's hair playfully. "You looked like you could use the company."

"I was asleep." Ryoma said flatly.

"Your point?" Zaizen asked. "Also, I knew you were being an Eavesdropping Eddie and I didn't want to snitch on you."

"How the hell did you know I was awake?" Ryoma asked.

Zaizen leaned closer, until their lips were only inches apart and Ryoma was lost in Zaizen’s hypnotic gaze. "I could feel you tensing, Ryoma. People don't tense in their sleep." He breathed, looking into Ryoma's golden eyes for a long moment.

Ryoma felt his face heat up a bit. Looking into Zaizen's verdant pools, Ryoma realized that he could easily get lost in their swirling depths and the mysteries they hid within them.

They were leaning even closer, lips only a hairsbreadth apart, when the spell was broken by a door slamming and Kintarou's voice loudly proclaiming, "You also need to work on your sleeping face, Koshimae. I could tell you were faking from a mile away."

The two broke apart and Ryoma flushed furiously, refusing to meet Zaizen's deeply amused eyes.

"I'm sorry." Ryoma whispered with his head down. "I woke up and was rather disoriented for a bit. The only voice I immediately recognized was yours and you seemed to be having an important discussion so I didn't want to interrupt." Ryoma explained.

There was no way that he was going to tell them that he didn’t think him being awake would help the conversation or that he felt awful for creating tension in the team.

Two fingers gently lifted his chin up and turned his head to face Zaizen. "You don't have to be ashamed of eavesdropping. It's only natural, especially when you hear your name mentioned." Zaizen said softly with a small smile playing on his mouth.

Ryoma blushed faintly before mentally giving himself a smack.

" _What on Earth has gotten into you, Ryoma!? Snap out of it! Sure Zaizen is incredibly sexy but that doesn't mean you should be blushing and fumbling like a schoolgirl! Where's your dignity?"_ Ryoma thought to himself in slight disgust at his less than productive actions.

**Meanwhile…**

"I'M TOO SEXY FOR MY SHIRT…TOO SEXY FOR MY SHIRT

SO SEXY IT HURTS

AND I'M TOO SEXY FOR MY CAR…TOO SEXY FOR MY CAR

TOO SEXY BY FAR

I'M TOO SEXY FOR MY HAT

TOO SEXY FOR MY HAT…WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THAT…"

"You better have a good reason for interrupting Ore-sama's weekend, Yukimura. Ore-sama is a very busy person and cannot deal with plebeians every day of the week." A man snapped once he picked up the right ringing cell phone from the drawer he kept his many cell phones in.  It was unbelievable how many people called his phones every day!

"Why hello to you too, Atobe! It's very important. I wouldn't be calling you if it wasn't. Meet me at the café a few blocks from the arena where the finals were held; my team and I need to discuss something with you.  And bring your team with you." Yukimura said before hanging up.

Atobe gave his phone a long look before closing it. "Stupid Yukimura…he thinks he can order Ore-sama around whenever he likes. He should be awed at Ore-sama's prowess…NOT ordering him around." He grumbled to himself as he got ready to leave. "Maybe Ore-sama should arrive in a helicopter just to spite Yukimura."

**Author's Note:**

> I've read a lot of stories where Ryoma gets betrayed and it's always kind of bothered me that he never got his story out before he leaves. None of the characters belong to me...the only thing that does is the plot.


End file.
